I have listened to Wilt for well over 20 years at this point so I'm very familiar with his work. For those less familiar, this is the work of James Keeler, who describes his work as "dark noise." He is joined by Dan Hall on guitars, pedals, and amps. Wilt is often a combination of noisy and dark and ominous. I have also followed Gruntsplatter for about the same length of time, first hearing Scott Candey's work when Phil at Troniks sent me a copy of Grimes' tape "The Infernal Machinations of Hell's Grim Tyrant," which I found to be wonderful. Over the years I've picked up a few of his albums, as well as ones put out on his label Crionic Mind. He describes Gruntsplatter as "somewhere in the gray area between Noise and Dark Ambient." In short, these are two artists that need little introduction to anyone that's followed the noisy dark ambient scene. The only question here is what will this collaboration sound like between these two giants (watching over us).

First off we have the disc labeled "Indoctrination," which is Gruntsplatter using Wilt source material. If you have ever wondered what it sounded like in the beginning when the Earth was formless and void and being created by the hand of God, "A Shiver Through The Hive" is a good approximation. You get a sense of what it felt like when the elements were crushed together to form the pale blue dot on which we all reside. So yeah, it's pretty heavy. "Gather at the Slumberland Pyres" gives no sign of this intensity letting up. Metal clanking together and once again that thick heavy bass rumbling that rattled my car as I drove around listening to this. Indeed if there was one word I would use to describe this entire disk it's "intense." There are some moments of respite from the crushing intensity of the various tracks. For example, the beginning of "The Shrine of 16 Hooves" gives the listener a little bit of breathing room. But like everything on this disc, this is temporary and eventually you are left under the crushing weight of the relentless bass rumble. If there is one drawback to this disc, it is that it does all begin to become a little overwhelming. There is a lot of complexity in the tracks, but you have to work to hear it, as everything is crushed underneath ten tons of rubble.

The next disc, "Repercussion," is Wilt using Gruntsplatter source material. From the opening track, "Eulogy Pt. 1 (Burnt Flowers)," there is a stark difference in approach, but there still an intensity here that belies its dark prettiness. The synth comes to the forefront, with other noisy elements kicking into effect. "Within the Twilight Chamber" calls back to the Indoctrination disc with heavy bass drone, but this is quickly pushed to the side as the synth comes in to tone it down a bit. If you're looking for more of that Wilt flavor this disc is where it's at, providing a nice microcosm of his various styles. "Annihilation Breath" and "An Eclipse of Pale Limbs" are noisy but not quite as overwhelmingly crushing as the Indoctrination disc. "Beneath the Sinking Moon," "The Cold Earth Slept Below," and "Eulogy Pt. 2 (Bone and Ash)" all have the dark, lush, ominous synth drone that I really enjoy from Wilt. One of his particular gifts is the ability to make it dark without being heavy-handed or evolving into silliness. This isn't the ominous feel of a horror movie but rather the sense of being in a dark forest as the sun is setting when you suddenly realize that you are completely lost. The disc ends with a nice blend of the crackling noise rumbling bass and heavy synth drone that is the hallmark of this disk.

As I was writing this review, Wilt mentioned to me that the album has a concept behind it. He said that "if we keep going the direction we are we will eat at the trough of Armageddon. Scott's mix is the now and the coming death and mine is about the aftermath, the future." With this in mind, Indoctrination sounds like a pretty painful way to go out, but there is still some hope, if however bleak, in Repercussion. I suppose if we continue with the biblical metaphor, this would be the period after the earth is cleansed with fire. Gruntsplatter describes his thoughts this way: "The election drums were pounding, the lockdown and pandemic were in full swing, Portland was in the middle of weeks of protests. I was listening to mixes in the car driving back and forth from the ER or hospital in the wee hours of the morning. Toward the end the air was choked with wildfire smoke, like I have never seen before. I was under stage one evacuations orders and my wife was doing less and less well. For all the pontificating that goes on about the end times, this was truly a time when it felt like things were piling up." With this in mind, it is little wonder that his disc evokes an overwhelming feeling of pressure and weight.

Overall, this is a great collaboration where the two discs play off of each other well. It manages to hang together while still being distinct in style and feel. This is one of those cases where the final product is greater than the sum of its parts. Well worth checking out.